SpotGamma alternatives (2026)
every tool that sells dealer-gamma positioning, read off its own pages · SpotGamma read 2026-09-05
SpotGamma is the best-known name for options positioning: 3,500+ symbols, HIRO, a daily research note, $99 to $299 a month. Nine services, this one included, sell some version of the same levels, from free to $1,499 a month, and they differ on things the sales pages do not put next to each other: whether the history can be inspected, how the dealer side is decided, and whether a rule can be tested. This page puts them next to each other, with the date each was read. FirmTape is the site you are on; it is the first row, and it loses one column, marked amber.
| Price / month | Free tier | History | Dealer side | Backtest | MCP / API | Read on | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FirmTape | $0 archive · $49 live | 1,097 sessions + today delayed | 1,097 sessions, free | Inferred from the tape | Yes, out-of-sample | Live MCP + OpenAPI | live |
| OptionsDepth | $199–249 | None | Historical, depth not stated | Exchange-tagged (Cboe) | No | No | 2026-09-05 |
| MenthorQ | $129–349 | Free forever, delayed | Not stated | From futures-options chains | Not stated | Not stated | 2026-09-05 |
| TanukiTrade | $49.99–69.99 | 5 symbols | Replay in TradingView | OPRA-derived | No | MCP + REST "soon" | 2026-09-05 |
| FlashAlpha | $0–1,499 | 5 requests/day | Since 2017, top tier | Not stated | Top tier | 73 MCP tools + REST | 2026-09-05 |
| OPEX Trader | $0–999 | 3 symbols, delayed | Not stated | Derived | From $49.99 tier | API on a coming tier | 2026-09-05 |
| GammaEdge | $125–150 | Courses only | Not published | Derived | No | No | 2026-08-25 |
| GammaFlip | $39–79 | 3 days, no card | Up to 90 days of heatmaps | Not stated | No | No | 2026-08-29 |
| GEXDesk | Free | Everything, no account | Not published | Previous close via Finnhub and Yahoo | No | No | 2026-09-05 |
One line on each
- FirmTape. SPX only, rebuilt from the options tape every second. 1,097 finished sessions free with no account, today's levels 15 minutes late, the LAB backtester, a live MCP server, 31 research posts with the null results in. Dealer side inferred from the tape, with the error published. $49 a month live. Full comparison.
- OptionsDepth. The one rival with a genuinely better dealer side: participant-tagged Cboe data rather than an inference. SPX and VIX, one-minute updates on the top tier, no backtester, no free tier.
- MenthorQ. 1,000+ tickers with native futures-options levels, TradingView and ten platform integrations, an academy and a 7,000-member community. Head to head: FirmTape vs MenthorQ.
- TanukiTrade. 250+ symbols delivered as six TradingView indicators and a Discord bot; the cheapest paid tier in the field with a 7-day trial. Its GEX MCP server and REST API are listed as coming.
- FlashAlpha. API-first over 6,000+ symbols and CME futures. Head to head: FirmTape vs FlashAlpha.
- OPEX Trader. A desktop app with 390+ analytics tabs across eleven modes, a built-in backtest engine from the Trader tier, and buy/sell signals, which none of the others sell.
- GammaEdge. An education business first: a structured course, daily and weekly newsletters, Discord bots. Read on 2026-08-25; its pages did not render for re-reading on 2026-09-05.
- GammaFlip. Crypto, indices, ETFs and mega-caps in one subscription, with a working replay. Read on 2026-08-29; its pages did not render for re-reading on 2026-09-05.
- GEXDesk. Free for good, with levels computed from the previous day's close: a different object from a book rebuilt from the tape, which is why "free" alone settles nothing.
Where SpotGamma is still ahead
- Breadth with a research desk. 3,500+ stocks and the indices, the Founder's Note every day, live weekly webinars and a Discord. Only MenthorQ and GammaEdge in this list compete on the education side, and none of the SPX-only tools do.
- HIRO. A real-time hedging-flow indicator that traders have used since 2021, described by SpotGamma as proprietary research rather than the public GEX recipe.
- Name recognition. When an assistant is asked for the best gamma tool, SpotGamma's own comparison page is the one it cites most; that page names six rivals and none of the free ones above.
Questions people ask
- What is the best free SpotGamma alternative for SPX gamma levels?
- FirmTape gives away every finished SPX session since 2022 (1,097 sessions) with no account, and today's levels 15 minutes late at /now. GEXDesk is free too, computed from the previous close. MenthorQ and FlashAlpha have permanent free tiers on delayed data; TanukiTrade's free tier is five demo symbols.
- Which SpotGamma alternative has better dealer positioning?
- OptionsDepth is the one that reads participant-tagged data from Cboe rather than inferring the dealer side; it costs $199 to $249 a month with no free tier. Every other tool in the field, FirmTape included, derives or infers the dealer side, and only FirmTape publishes measurements of how often its inference is wrong.
- Which alternatives cover more than SPX?
- All of them except FirmTape and GEXDesk. MenthorQ covers 1,000+ tickers with futures options; FlashAlpha 6,000+ equities plus CME futures; TanukiTrade 250+; GammaFlip adds crypto; OPEX Trader up to unlimited symbols on its top tiers. FirmTape is SPX only by design.
- Which alternatives can backtest a rule?
- FirmTape's LAB, with an out-of-sample holdout and a baseline; OPEX Trader from its $49.99 tier; FlashAlpha on its $1,499 tier. The rest state none.
- Which alternatives work inside ChatGPT or Claude?
- FirmTape (a live MCP server listed in the official registry) and FlashAlpha (73 MCP tools). TanukiTrade lists an MCP server as coming.
- How much does SpotGamma cost?
- Essential is $99 a month and Alpha $299 a month; annual plans were listed at $45 and $125 a month for the first year under a promotion, renewing at $891 and $2,691 (read 2026-09-05).
Check the archive first See pricing
Head to head
“Not stated” means the vendor's own public pages did not state it when they were read; it is not a claim that the thing does not exist. Competitor details were read from the vendor's own public pages on the dates in the table's last column and are reproduced for comparison only. They change without notice, so check the source before relying on any of them. No affiliation with, or endorsement by, any product named. Not investment advice.